Until the End
by lalalei
Summary: Fresh off his victory in the Alola Pokemon League, Ash runs into a familiar trio of Rockets who want to congratulate his win. With a game-changing event behind them, it isn't long before Ash and Team Rocket contemplate the future as well.


Even after his victory, Ash found it hard to believe. The trophy was his, the cheering crowds called his name, and his mother and Professor Oak beamed with pride from the stands—but even now it didn't seem quite real. (The Guzzlord attacking almost immediately after had put things into perspective, at least.) With a break between crises for the exhibition match between him and Professor Kukui, Ash thought it best to take in the sights of the Alola League with fresh eyes. With Pikachu on his shoulder, things almost felt the same as they had before—but his victory still astounded him.

And then, not looking where he was going, he bumped into Team Rocket, quite literally. They had changed out of their Alolan disguises, and Ash recognized them on sight. Pikachu's cheeks began to glow with electricity, ready for an oncoming attack, but Meowth interrupted. "Cut the juice, ya little lightning rod. We ain't here to battle ya."

"That's right," said James, who looked awkward. "We're actually here to…well, it's sort of embarrassing, but…"

Jessie promptly interrupted. "As Team Rocket agents who've been chasing you for longer than the kids watching us have been alive, we thought it best to congratulate you on your first official League win. …At least the first one based on the games, anyway."

"Never thought I'd see the day," Meowth chimed in, wiping an imaginary tear from his eye. "22 years and ya finally did it! O' course, dat's if ya don't count the Orange League or the Battle Frontier. But even if ya do, it's still amazin'!"

"That's right," said James, now looking more confident. "Congratulations, twerp. Besides your mom and that annoying professor, you've made us proud too!"

Ash smiled at the rare display of affection, though he wondered what Jessie had meant by 'all the kids watching us', among other confusing statements. He supposed she meant the fans in the stadium, but at his questioning look James sighed.

"Right, we forgot. You can't break the fourth wall that often…But after seeing the fans' reaction, it'd probably help you to see them too. You've made _history_, after all! Jessie, could you—"

Jessie nodded and focused her attention to Ash. "Already on it. Listen, twerp—look _exactly_ where I'm pointing."

Ash was still confused, but followed her gaze and extended finger. At first he just saw the horizon, then the stadium walls, until finally something clicked in his vision and Ash was able to look _out_, past the boundaries of their world and into what felt like a vast, connected network called the internet. He saw Pokemon fans excitedly discussing his future, congratulating him for the win, and older fans feeling as if their dreams had finally come true. He saw multitudes of congratulations from other realms and characters entirely, fan art showing past companions as well as his present ones celebrating, and stories written in honor of the win, including the story written on this page.

It wasn't all positive—some fans wondered if the victory counted given the League's unique circumstances, while others were disappointed he'd be heading to a region called Galar shortly afterward—but on the whole, it seemed almost everyone was happy and enthused for him, waiting for whatever adventure would come next.

Ash blinked, and it was gone, but the warm thoughts and feelings engraved on his heart, as did the reminiscences of the past and glimpses of what was to come. Had it really been _that_ long, he wondered, since he started his journey? And now he'd soon have new friends in a boy named Go and a girl named Koharu, and her professor father. With the recent news of the Pocket Monsters manga ending in favor of a new one starring himself and Go, Ash felt overwhelmed at all the attention and news—and a little nervous. Even with a new region to explore, for the first time he wondered how long he had to last in the world of Pokemon.

It seemed things were finally changing.

"We can see the fourth wall and we've never been affected like this," Jessie muttered, concerned at Ash's dazed expression. "I guess he's never seen it this _long_ before."

"Jessie, he's spacin' out," Meowth cut in, clearly worried. "I'm gonna have to do something I haven't done in ages—Fury Swipes!"

At the burst of sudden pain, Ash flinched and was able to focus on the trio and reality again, and in moments the scratches faded to nothing as Meowth muttered something about jump cuts.

"Keep your helmet on, space cadet," James said sternly. "You still have a battle to fight and a new region to explore. Let _us_ worry about what's going to happen next—you just enjoy the ride."

Ash nodded. "Alright. But…why do you guys care so much? You're always causing trouble and stealing Pokemon!"

To that Jessie cackled with pride. "Of course! We're Team Rocket! But that doesn't mean we don't care about you twerps. Whether it's Team Flare or Hunter J, we'll be there to help against villains worse than us. …Even if we don't do that well."

"We did against Team Plasma," Meowth reminded her, which lifted her spirits. "Remember the good ol' days when it was just us? No other evil teams ta worry about, the old voice actors were on board, and everythin' was hand-painted! A lot of fans still think of your hair as red even though it was 800 episodes ago!"

"I remember," Jessie said, "and James' hair was blue! Between Gym Leaders turning people into dolls and getting stranded on a Pokemon amusement park island, back then it felt like anything could happen."

"If Ash Ketchum can win a League, anything can _still_ happen, Jess," James said with a dashing grin. Still grinning, he turned to Ash. "You better watch your back, twerp—and Pikachu, too!"

"Will you guys be okay," Ash finally said, with Pikachu nodding in concern. "After all, now that I'm a champion it'll be that much harder to steal Pikachu!"

Jessie harrumphed. "I'll have you know we've stolen your electric rat many times over! We just… have trouble hanging onto him."

"Heh. If your League wins meant anythin' to us we'd have taken all your losses into account like _some_ fans do," Meowth added. "But wherever Ash goes, Team Rocket will follow."

"Besides, you're not invincible," James finished mischievously. "It took us a thousand episodes to beat you in a fair battle, but we finally did! With success like that, stealing Pikachu for good like in Pokemon Live can't be too far off."

Ash grinned back at the challenge, but as he thought it over he frowned. "If you stole Pikachu for good, even though I'd get him back, that would mean…"

"The show would be wrapping up," Jessie finished. "Or at least, the show as we know it would—people are thinking that Go kid might replace you down the line. But I wouldn't worry your twerpish head over it; the fans have been wrong before. Nothing's really set in stone. Your victory proved that!"

"And that interview where it said if you became a Pokemon Master the show would end is 10 years out of date," added James. "Really, though—celebrate with Pikachu while you can; you can bet we'll be back and badder than ever!"

"And we'll be here and stronger than ever," Ash retaliated with a grin, and Pikachu added a "Chu!" to back him up. Team Rocket stepped back into one of their familiar villainous poses, and the sense of normalcy crept back in. It was good to know that as much as things changed, or could change, some things stayed the same.

Win or lose, champion or not, Team Rocket would be there until the end.


End file.
